The San Diego County Sheriff's Department is the chief law enforcement agency in the County
of San Diego. The department is comprised of approximately 4,000 employees, both sworn officers and professional support staff.
The department provides general law enforcement and jail functions for the people of San Diego County in a service area of
approximately 4,200 square miles. In addition, the department provides specialized regional services to the entire county,
whether they are needed in incorporated cities within the county or in the unincorporated areas not serviced by a city law
enforcement agency.

The San Diego County Sheriff's
Department is organized into six general service areas which includes the following: Office of the Sheriff; Law Enforcement
Services; Detention Facility Services; Court Services; Human Resource Services; and, Management Services.

Currently the Sheriff's Department provides contract
law enforcement services for the cities of Del Mar, Encinitas, Imperial Beach, Lemon Grove, Poway, San Marcos, Santee, Solana
Beach and Vista. In these cities the Sheriff's Department serves as their police department. There, the department provides
full service law enforcement ranging from general patrol and traffic functions to specialized investigative services.

In the unincorporated (non-city) areas, the
Sheriff's Department provides generalized patrol services as well as all the necessary law enforcement investigative services.
The California Highway Patrol provides the traffic service for these areas. These communities range from the urban neighborhoods
to the very remote rural communities of San Diego County.

Click here to view the Crime Rate per 1,000 Residents for the cities and unincorporated areas
of the County of San Diego. This information is developed by the San Diego Association of Governments.

It is noteworthy that the majority of those
with a crime rate less than the regional average are primarily handled by the Sheriff's Department.

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department
also operates seven major detention facilities. These facilities, commonly called "jails", are spread throughout
the county. Each facility is much like a city itself. A wide variety of services such as laundry and food services are necessary
and vital to maintaining the day-to-day operation.

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department detention facilities hold over 5,000 inmates on any
given day. The routine movement of these inmates to courts, hospitals and between the seven detention facilities requires
a fleet of buses, vans, cars and deputy sheriff's to accomplish the task. In addition, approximately 15,000 meals a day
must be prepared just to feed the inmates. The San Diego County Sheriff's Department assumed responsibility for Court
Services in January 2000. For several years, this service was provided by the Marshal's Office. However, as a result of
both local and state legislation, these services were consolidated under the Sheriff. The Office of the Marshal was retired.

Source:

sdsheriff.net

In 1992, Maureen Tracy joined the San Diego County Sheriff's Department as
a deputy sheriff.She is the 400th author to be added to the list
of state and local police officer who have written books.

After the academy Maureen Tracy worked in a correctional facility and was ultimately
transferred to a specialized unit.Her book, The Department, is an account of her experiences on the San Diego County
Sheriff’s Department.Maureen Tracy stated about her book, “One fall
morning I received the phone call that changed my life. In turn of personal traumatic events I made a mistake on the job.
However, despite the mitigating circumstances discovered through the Internal Affairs investigation, I found myself on the
chopping block and headed toward termination. Was my mistake immoral? Yes. Were the actions of many people on this Department
immoral? Absolutely. This is a story about the "good" of my job and the love I had for it. It is about the "bad" in the harassment,
animosity and jealousy I experienced. This is the "truth" as to why I left the Department.”